Author: Steven Sahiounie

Pope Francis today reiterated the need for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and called urgently for access to humanitarian aid to Palestinians there. Speaking during his annual meeting with the diplomatic corps accredited to the Vatican City on the occasion of Christmas and New Year’s, Pope Francis addressed several international issues, focusing on the need for dialogue and diplomacy to come up with peaceful solutions for disputed issues and calling for justice and world peace. Tackling conflicts in the Middle East, the Pope called for a ceasefire on all fronts, stressing that the reality of war is nothing but…

The UN General Assembly ( UNGA ) will meet on Tuesday to discuss the US vetoing an amendment to a UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution on December 22. The amendment, proposed by Russia, would have added a clause calling for “an urgent suspension of hostilities” to a humanitarian resolution that the 15-member council adopted later that day. The 193-member UNGA can convene a formal meeting within 10 working days of a veto being cast by a permanent member of the UNSC. Source: ALJazeera

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan discussed the situation in Gaza with his Dutch counterpart Hanke Bruins Slot in Al-Ula on Monday. The two discussed developments in the situation in Gaza and the efforts made to deal with its humanitarian repercussions. Additionally, the ministers touched on bilateral relations between their countries and ways to strengthen them. Also on Monday, Prince Faisal met with European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. The two sides discussed ties between Saudi Arabia and the EU, along with the situation in Gaza and the efforts made toward ending the crisis, especially…

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Riyad al- Malki , today called on his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, to pressure Israel for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and to urgently bring basic humanitarian needs to Palestinians there. During a meeting in Ramallah, Malki briefed his German counterpart on the conditions in the Gaza Strip as a result of the ongoing genocidal war against innocent civilians for the fourth month, the destruction of all fundamental elements of human existence in the Strip and turning it into an uninhabitable place. Malki also addressed the continuous and daily violations by the occupation…

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met President of the UAE Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi on Monday as part of his regional tour. The two discussed bilateral relations and regional issues which included the events in Gaza. UAE President; Al Nahyan emphasized the need for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to protect civilian lives and ensure safe channels for delivery of humanitarian relief. Over the past few days, Blinken visited Jordan and Qatar as part of a Middle East tour that started on Jan. 4 with a mission to prevent the Israeli-Hamas war from…

The Iranian Foreign Ministry called on the US and other Western allies of the Israeli regime to prove their intention to end the war on Gaza in practice instead of fueling regional instability. Asked by Tasnim about the US secretary of state’s recent visit to the region and the speculation that he has sent Iran an indirect message during the trip, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said at a presser on Monday, “We have a clear stance. If the US government, the Western states and the allies of the (Zionist) regime are truly and sincerely after a solution to the…

Scores of colonial Israeli settlers today broke into the compound of al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem under heavy protection from the Israeli police, according to witnesses. The settlers raided the holy mosque from the Moroccan Gate and performed provocative tours in its compounds. They also performed Talmudic rituals there. This latest incident adds to the ongoing tensions surrounding Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third most revered site in Islam. The entry of settlers into the compound, backed by Israeli security forces, is often met with condemnation from Palestinian officials and religious authorities. The Islamic Waqf, the Jordan-run authority in charge of the holy…

The Israeli military has admitted that a strategic air base on Mount Meron was “seriously damaged” in a missile attack launched by Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement, amid growing concerns in Tel Aviv over the group’s capabilities.

The Iraqi Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba resistance movement has claimed responsibility for the missile attack against Haifa, declaring that Israel should await more crippling attacks in retaliation for its bloody war on Gaza.

A vast network of underground tunnels built by the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip has caused “significant casualties” among invading Israeli forces and made Israel’s victory in its genocidal war on the besieged strip “less certain,” according to an American news publication.